Everything
by Marie Tomas
Summary: (AU) Alec Lightwood wasn't sure what he meant to Magnus Bane.
1. Everything

**Notes:** A Mundane/Human AU based on the characters and settings of the Shadowhunters TV show, with a few extra character traits borrowed from the Season 1 episode _This World, Inverted_ , along with a couple of references to the _Star Wars_ movies.

Featuring cop Alec (who's secretly shy, uncertain and romantic beneath the tough exterior), nervous Magnus Bane, plenty of misunderstandings and miscommunication, established Simon/Izzy (Sizzy) and eventual Malec.

* * *

 **Everything**

* * *

Alec Lightwood wasn't sure what he meant to Magnus Bane.

It wasn't like Alec was any kind of expert at reading people's emotions, but when it came to Magnus Bane, it was pretty easy for anyone, even Alec, to work out just how much the people that Magnus _really_ cared about meant to him.

It was especially easy for Alec to work out just how much Magnus cared about both Izzy and Simon.

Alec's sister Izzy had first met Magnus one Saturday night a few months ago at a club she liked to hang out at called Pandemonium. Apparently the two of them had hit it off after they shared a couple drinks and commiserated over their not-so-great exes.

From then on, Magnus and Izzy had pretty much become best friends, which is what had brought Magnus Bane into Alec's life in the first place.

It was obvious to Alec that Magnus adored Izzy, as he lavished her with attention and expensive gifts like jewelry and perfume, and the two of them spent a lot of their free time hanging out at Magnus's loft in Brooklyn, gossiping, hosting 'movie nights' and drinking cocktails, or heading out to bars and clubs at weekends.

Alec had kind of hoped that after Izzy found a friend like Magnus who shared her passion for music and fashion and dancing, it would mean that _he_ would be exempt from these nights at places like Pandemonium. He'd always felt kind of shy and insecure anyway, preferring to stay in the background, so getting drunk and 'busting moves' on the dance floor (as Simon always annoyingly called it) had never really been his thing.

His job as a cop only added to this desire to not attract too much attention on the party scene in Brooklyn. Not to mention that Pandemonium always made him feel kind of uneasy. He wasn't sure if it was just the extra sense of paranoia that had been ingrained in him through his work, but some of the people at Pandemonium always made Alec feel a little suspicious, and he always felt like he couldn't really switch off from 'cop duty' when he was there; he usually spent most of the night watching people from a distance, his stance defensive, his muscles tense, almost like he would have to intervene in some kind of trouble at any moment.

However, Alec had had no such luck in avoiding nights of partying with Izzy and Magnus, as his sister always insisted that he should go with the two of them, almost like they both actually wanted him to be there, for some reason.

It was on one of these nights when Alec had been dragged to Pandemonium with Izzy and Magnus yet again that Simon Lewis wandered into their lives.

The guy had literally been wandering around the club looking lost, until he caught sight of Izzy dancing enthusiastically on the dance floor and he'd quickly stopped in his tracks so he could stare at her, mouthing words that Alec worked out were, "Wow!" and, "She's so awesome!"

Alec had felt a little protective of Izzy at first as he watched the scene from a distance, leaning against a wall in a dark corner of the club with his arms folded, trying to stay out of the way to avoid any trouble (Alec had already had more than one run in with guys at Pandemonium who hadn't treated his sister with respect, along with a couple of arguments with his sister's exes), but after a little while, he'd decided that Simon was no threat, as he seemed to be looking at Izzy with an almost innocent admiration, his expression kind of shy or nervous as he watched her.

It turned out that Simon really had been lost, as all of the guys who Simon arrived with had mysteriously disappeared not long after they walked in the club (Alec suspected that Simon's so-called buddies might have just ditched him, but he didn't want to say this out loud and hurt anybody's feelings, especially when sensitivity still wasn't his strong point, according to Izzy).

Magnus seemed to take pity on the guy, inviting Simon to hang out with _them_ for the evening instead. And from that night on, both Izzy and Magnus just seemed to 'adopt' Simon into their group.

Simon seemed to take to Magnus right away, because he listened with rapt attention whenever Magnus told stories about his past relationships, often begging Magnus to tell him more about the beautiful women he'd dated. They even seemed to share a couple favorite songs and bands, and a passion for books and movies.

It wasn't exactly clear to Alec if Simon had really meant a lot to Magnus right from the start, but even _he_ could see that it didn't take long for Simon and all his quirky ways to grow on him.

Soon, Magnus was sharing long conversations with Simon, offering sympathy whenever Simon argued with his mom or sister, and offering him advice on how to get into a relationship, rolling his eyes affectionately whenever Simon attempted to refer to Magnus as his 'wing man' and telling him that he preferred the term 'mentor'.

After a little while, when it became clear that Simon was way more interested in trying to get into a relationship with Izzy than attempting to be a 'player' and hook up with all the pretty women in Brooklyn (well, clear to Magnus anyway, who seemed to understand that sort of stuff), Magnus was also the one who stepped up and helped get the two of them together, even advising Simon on what to wear for their dates, and allowing the two of them to use his apartment for romantic evenings and candle lit dinners, while Alec used his time more wisely (in his opinion, anyway), by going into full protective-older-brother-mode and insisting that he would be there for his sister if Simon _ever_ did anything to upset her.

It wasn't that Alec minded too much about Simon dating Izzy. He'd never really pictured a guy like Simon as Izzy's type, but he had to admit that Simon was way better than any of the jerks his sister had dated in the past, and he really seemed to care about Izzy. It was more that the bond that developed between Magnus, Izzy and Simon as a result of Simon and Izzy's dates had only served to make Alec feel even more at a distance from Magnus and the friendship group.

* * *

Alec had always been close to Izzy, with the two of them often relying on each other as they grew up together, and he now considered Simon as one of his friends, too (more by default of Simon being Izzy's boyfriend than anything else, but still), and Magnus definitely had a close friendship with Izzy and Simon, yet when it came to Alec, Magnus seemed to treat him completely differently to how he treated his two closest friends.

When he was around Simon and Izzy, Alec could pick up on the happy smiles on his face, the genuine laughter, the light in his eyes when he was talking to them, or the looks of real sympathy and concern whenever Izzy or Simon were confiding in him. But there were no easy smiles or long, heartfelt conversations between Alec and Magnus the way that there always were between Magnus, Izzy and Simon. Instead, there were awkward silences and serious expressions.

Alec wasn't even sure that Magnus liked him very much, as it seemed like everything about his body language and facial expressions was totally closed off whenever Alec was over at his apartment; he would go silent for what felt like hours at a time, or look away sometimes when Alec was talking to the group, or look down at the floor, or he would just look into the distance, usually keeping his arms folded the whole time.

Alec wasn't very good at reading emotions, but a couple of years' experience as a cop had taught him to pick up on defensive, closed-off body language when he saw it.

At other times, Magnus would just keep a physical distance in general, always positioning himself pretty far away from Alec when the four of them were sitting on the couch in Magnus's living room.

All of this led Alec to suspect that Magnus maybe only tolerated him because he was Izzy's older brother, and he probably meant nothing to him.

Yet every time Alec tried to distance himself from the trio that was Magnus, Izzy and Simon, Izzy would always look panic-stricken and insist that he couldn't do that, telling him that Magnus wanted him to be there, really, and that Magnus would be upset if Alec stopped hanging out at his loft.

Alec wasn't in any way convinced by Izzy's insistence that Magnus really wanted Alec at his apartment whenever Izzy went to hang out there, but in the end, he usually ended up going with her anyway, more to keep his sister happy than anything else.

Then, just when Alec would convince himself that Magnus disliked him and didn't want to talk to him, Magnus would surprise him by asking Alec the strangest questions-questions about his favorite color or his favorite books, or he would start talking to Alec about random topics like his favorite type of flower, or Alec's interest in working out at the gym, or a couple of the movies that Alec and Izzy used to watch as kids, sometimes with a smirk on his face as he talked, which would only confuse Alec even more, and would inevitably lead to him responding with one-word answers while he frowned at Magnus the whole time.

There were even times when Magnus would look a little out of breath whenever Alec was around him, his chest rising and falling as he breathed heavily, almost like Alec somehow stressed him out; or he would look a little flushed, his hands shaking as he made a big deal out of checking if Alec wanted something else to drink, or something more to eat, asking Alec over and over if he was comfortable, before going silent again when Alec responded sharply that he was fine.

All of this would usually be coupled with strange gestures, like Magnus running a hand over his own ear while he talked to Alec, or a hand through his hair.

Sometimes, Alec was sure that he caught Magnus smiling in his direction when they were all watching movies together at Magnus's place with the lights dimmed in the living room, but then he would quickly look away when Alec glanced in his direction, his expression serious again, and Alec would seriously start to wonder if he'd only imagined his smiles.

Every time Magnus gave him one of his mysterious smiles, it was almost like Magnus knew something that Alec didn't, or like he was in on some sort of secret that Alec just couldn't work out.

To make things even more confusing, Magnus would always ask Alec if he wanted to stay longer whenever Alec tried to leave the apartment, usually saying something like, "Alexander, stay, please…" just after Simon and Izzy left. He would offer Alec another drink, or a cup of tea, or he'd simply tell him that he didn't have to rush off, if he didn't want to.

Yet Alec always politely declined these mysterious offers to stay a little longer at the apartment-after evenings of awkward silences between the two of them when Simon and Izzy were around, Alec could think of nothing worse than a night of awkward silences when the two of them were alone together.

* * *

Alec knew that objectively, he really shouldn't let Magnus's apparent indifference and his weird behavior around him get to him so much. Alec had always been proudly independent, and he'd never really cared about being liked by everyone, or having groups of friends hanging onto his every word. Even as a kid, he'd only ever really needed his close bond with his sister to get him through everything, and that hadn't changed now that they were adults.

Yet Alec also knew that this time, things were very different, and his feelings were very different… because secretly, Alec Lightwood was totally in love with Magnus Bane.

Alec had known for years that he was attracted to guys, but he hadn't exactly realized that he was falling in love with Magnus at first, as he'd always been pretty clueless when it came to romantic love and relationships; he'd never had a relationship of his own, as much as he really wanted to be in one, secretly, and he could barely even get through a conversation with an attractive guy without blushing or stumbling over his words.

But, even from the moment he first met Magnus on a night with Izzy at Pandemonium, Alec had been totally mesmerized by Magnus's good looks.

He'd stared at Magnus's handsome face, his beautiful eyes, his designer clothes, his jewelry and the streaks of purple in his perfect hair in stunned silence for what felt like several minutes before he finally realized he was staring and he'd blushed and looked away, feeling embarrassed. He'd barely been able to put two words together that night, or lift a hand to wave or shake Magnus's hand.

Alec had quickly decided that Magnus was the most beautiful man he'd ever met. He had this strange desire to own a photo of Magnus so that he could carry it around in his pocket, just so he could take it out and look at it on tough days at work, or upload it as the background on his phone, the way that Izzy did with pictures of Simon. Although Alec was sure that Izzy's decision to also get a key ring made containing a picture of Simon, along with her putting up a display of photo booth pictures of the two of them on her bedroom wall, and what seemed like almost daily uploads of 'cute' pictures of Simon on her social media accounts, was maybe a little over the top.

Then there was the undeniable fact that whenever Magnus was standing close to him, Alec's heart always started beating fast, and he felt a little breathless, and he always had to fight to cover up his blushes.

Alec wasn't just attracted to Magnus's good looks though; he was also completely enchanted by Magnus's personality, too-well, Magnus's personality when he was around his friends, anyway. Alec loved the way that Magnus would smile or laugh or tell really funny jokes when he was with Izzy and Simon, and he told the most fascinating stories that Alec really wanted to hear over and over again.

Sometimes, Magnus would also sing softly or dance around the apartment when he was in a good mood, and Alec kind of wanted to dance with him, even though he'd always insisted that he hated dancing.

Alec also noticed the times when Magnus looked kind of vulnerable, or kind of sad: every now and again, a darker look seemed to cross his face, like he was thinking about something in his past, or the not-so-great moments in his life, and Alec really wanted to wrap Magnus up in his arms and take care of him; he wanted to make all of his sad expressions go away.

Alec also saw the kind and loving side to Magnus, and the way that people seemed to go to him for advice or for help. He noticed how Magnus listened so patiently to people, and how he tried to solve all their problems for them, or simply offer them a shoulder to cry on.

This love and care seemed to extend to the animals in Magnus's life, too, and he seemed to adore his two pet cats, often carrying them protectively in his arms as he wandered around his apartment, or the cats sat close to him when he was relaxing on the couch.

Although Alec would never admit it out loud to anyone, deep down, he wished that he could hold Magnus's hand the way that Izzy and Magnus held hands when they walked around Pandemonium together.

He wished that he could sit with Magnus late into the night while Magnus told him long, detailed stories as he smiled at him, opening up about his life.

He wished that he and Magnus could watch romantic movies together and kiss in the darkened room as the scenes played out in front of them.

Every time he watched from a distance as Magnus got comfortable on the couch, Alec kind of wished that he could just lay his head on Magnus's lap like his cats always did, even though this image always made Alec blush bright red whenever he thought about it.

And, every time he heard Magnus tell Simon yet another story about one of his ex-girlfriends, Alec would feel a painful pang of jealousy at each word. It felt like his heart was actually breaking a little every time a woman's name was mentioned, as each story further convinced Alec all over again that Magnus would never even be attracted to guys, let alone shy, inexperienced Alec.

It was this kind of jealousy, and his constant daydreams about being in romantic situations with Magnus, that had confirmed to Alec that his feelings for Magnus ran much deeper than just physical attraction.

* * *

Alec had told himself over and over that Magnus wasn't even attracted to men, but still, Alec really wanted to mean as much to Magnus Bane as Simon and Izzy did; or at the very least, he wanted to mean _something_ to him.

And so, Alec had attempted, in what he knew was his own shy, awkward way, to be a little more friendly with Magnus, in order to get to know him a little better.

First, he tried following Magnus into the kitchen one Friday night when Magnus went to make dinner, leaving Simon and Izzy cuddling on the couch together. He attempted to lean casually on the kitchen counter and make polite conversation, but Magnus only seemed to drop stuff on the floor as a result, even burning the food in the oven at one point, and so Alec gave up and headed back to the living room, deciding that he was probably just getting in Magnus's way.

Then, he tried sitting a little closer than usual to Magnus on the couch during one of the movie nights at Magnus's loft, but this sudden movement as he got closer somehow resulted in Magnus spilling his drink all over the coffee table, almost like Alec's change in seating position had startled him or something. Even the cats ran out of the room at the sound of the glass hitting the table. Feeling embarrassed, Alec helped clean up the spilled drink and then quickly moved back to his original position before Izzy could ask what was going on.

A week after that, Alec was sitting at Magnus's kitchen table with Magnus, Simon and Izzy, the four of them sharing a takeout while Alec talked about a couple of issues at work.

Simon had a bunch of ideas about how Alec could solve his latest case (Simon pretty much had a load of ideas and opinions about everything, even the stuff he didn't know very much about), and even Izzy seemed to nod along sympathetically.

"Magnus, what do you think?" Alec suddenly asked in a moment of inspiration, deciding to take this as an opportunity to get Magnus to talk to him.

"Huh?" Magnus asked as he blinked rapidly, like he hadn't even been listening to a word that Alec just said, or like he'd zoned out of the conversation as soon as Alec started talking, which led to Alec letting out another sigh of disappointment as he wondered if he really bored Magnus _that much_ that he couldn't even concentrate when Alec was talking.

This went on for weeks, with Alec trying his limited methods of getting Magnus to talk to him more, before he eventually decided that nothing had changed between them, and the situation was looking increasingly hopeless.

Anyway, the war in his head and his heart between his secret love for Magnus, and a lack of understanding about what _he_ meant to Magnus in return, always served to leave Alec feeling increasingly frustrated every time he visited Magnus's Brooklyn loft.

* * *

Everything came to a head one Friday night when Alec headed to Magnus's Brooklyn loft for what was apparently going to be a ' _Star Wars_ movie marathon'.

It wasn't like Alec was totally opposed to the idea of staying in on a Friday night to watch _Star Wars_. He and Izzy had both loved the movies as kids, and they'd often watched them late into the night in each other's rooms with the volume turned down so their parents wouldn't hear. Yet tonight, Alec was really struggling to feel enthusiastic about _Star Wars_ and an evening at Magnus's.

If he was being totally honest, Alec knew that he'd already been in a bad mood long before he heaved a sigh and lifted a hand to knock on Magnus's front door. This was because all in all, it had been a pretty crappy week.

He'd already endured an evening with Izzy and Simon at a bar they liked to drink at on their 'quieter' nights, where Izzy had spent most of the night sipping cocktails and pointing at Simon and saying, "I'm his girlfriend!" to anyone who would listen, like this was some _amazing_ news that she needed to share with the world, before Alec firmly insisted that Izzy wasn't allowed to have any more to drink. He and Simon had ended up leaving early with Izzy and walking her home, the two of them making awkward conversation along the way while they both kept a close eye on Izzy.

The next night, he and Izzy had felt obliged to attend a family dinner with their mom, and because Izzy had been a little too hungover and way too distracted texting Simon to really focus on the 'family' aspect of the dinner, Alec had been the one who'd had to deal with their mom's awkward questions about his long-term career plans and his non-existent relationship status, as always.

The fact that his mom always looked so upset every time Alec mentioned that he was still single was only made even worse by the sad truth that he was the one who'd always dreamed of finding the perfect partner, even back when he was a teenager. He'd always believed in the idea of true love and soulmates (even though the guys he worked with would probably laugh if he ever said this out loud), and he'd always thought that he'd eventually overcome his shyness around men and meet the right guy, maybe even settle down pretty early and have a family, while Izzy had always been so insistent that she was _never_ getting married whenever their mom used to ask her about it.

Alec felt like it was a little strange that it had worked out that _Izzy_ was the one in a serious relationship now with her 'perfect guy', while Alec was still too shy to even strike up a conversation with guys at bars.

Then there was the fact that he'd been receiving a couple of deliveries of flowers to his apartment over the past week, with no note or card attached. Alec was convinced that they were being sent to the wrong address, because there were plenty of actual couples who lived in his apartment block who would probably buy flowers for each other, but the mailman always refused to take them back. The constant deliveries of beautiful flowers only served to remind Alec over and over again of his single status.

Add in a couple of really busy days at work and a lot of paperwork, and Alec really felt like he could snap at any moment by the time he knocked on Magnus's front door on Friday night, the knock maybe a little louder than he'd planned.

The door was answered by Izzy, who was wearing a blue T-shirt with the ' _Star Wars_ ' logo emblazoned on the front.

Ever since she'd got together with Simon, Izzy seemed to have embraced her 'inner geek', or whatever it was that Simon usually called it, and she often wore T-shirts like this one, celebrating her and Simon's love for certain book series or movie franchises, as well as the two of them wearing various matching band T-shirts whenever Simon had a gig with his band.

A few of their mutual friends seemed to assume that Izzy had changed since she became Simon's girlfriend, but Alec knew that this is who Izzy had always been, just underneath the surface. She hadn't cared about anyone seeing her walking around wearing _Star Wars_ T-shirts as a kid, but as a teenager she'd kind of gotten in with a bad crowd and started to change a little, caring more about sneaking out and wearing the latest designer labels.

Although Izzy still loved designer clothes and expensive cocktails and partying, since she met Simon, she also seemed more comfortable to show her more geeky side again.

"Nice T-shirt," Alec mumbled with a raised eyebrow, unable to resist a little brotherly mockery.

" _Alec_ …" Izzy warned him with a stern expression, but then she walked over to him to give him a hug.

As she pulled away from the hug, Alec noticed that the braid he'd put in her hair earlier when she'd been at his apartment was still intact, hanging loosely over her left shoulder.

Alec had kind of taught himself how to help Izzy style her hair back when they were kids, when their parents worked long hours and didn't always have much time, and Izzy had had no clue how to braid her own hair.

When she was a teenager, Alec had also started helping Izzy apply her makeup, and his sister always insisted that he was pretty good at the whole hair and makeup thing, so it had kind of continued when they were adults, even though Izzy no longer really needed her brother's help with stuff like that.

When Izzy had shown up at his apartment a couple hours ago, they'd fallen into their usual routine where Alec had braided her hair and attempted to come up with excuses not to go to Magnus's tonight, while Izzy had sat still and argued back, telling Alec that Magnus wanted him to be there.

Not that Alec minded too much; he found the whole process kind of therapeutic, in a weird way. Something about the whole thing just seemed to work for the two of them; it was like the routine of it and the reminder of their dynamic back when they were kids helped them both relax.

As much as Alec was dedicated to his job as a cop, and everything that went with it, like chasing bad guys and working out at the gym with his colleagues, and competing against them in physical tasks or sharing friendly banter with the guys on his team, he also enjoyed his evenings spent with his sister, helping her with her hair and makeup.

He suppressed a smile as he couldn't help wondering what the guys he worked with like Jace and Luke would think if they knew that he spent a lot of his free time braiding his sister's hair, helping her apply eyeliner and daydreaming about being Magnus Bane's boyfriend.

Alec was distracted from his thoughts when Izzy suddenly looked in the direction of the apartment front door and a soft smile crossed her face.

"Simon," she said as she placed her hand over her heart, "you brought me flowers!"

Alec turned to look at Simon, who really was standing in the doorway holding a huge bunch of flowers in his arms, wearing a _Star Wars_ T-shirt that matched Izzy's and a goofy grin on his face.

Alec was happy for Izzy, happy that this romantic gesture was making her look so thrilled, but at the same time, he couldn't help feeling a little sorry for himself; _he'd_ always dreamed of having someone in his life who _he_ could buy flowers for.

Alec had a feeling that maybe the current expression on his face wasn't so pleasant, because Izzy muttered, "Alec, be nice," before she walked over to greet Simon with a kiss.

"Hey, baby," Simon greeted Izzy while Alec rolled his eyes.

Then Simon turned to Alec and greeted him with a nod and a serious expression and a, "S'up," like they were both the two 'macho dudes' of the group or something.

"Hey," Alec replied to him, really making an effort not to roll his eyes all over again.

He was distracted from Simon when Magnus emerged from his kitchen, where he'd apparently been making popcorn for the four of them.

Alec tried his best to ignore the sudden increase in his heart rate that was pretty common whenever he was around Magnus Bane. He also tried to ignore the familiar pang of jealousy when Magnus greeted Izzy and Simon with a hug before he told them that they could go find a vase for the flowers in the kitchen.

"Alexander," he greeted Alec with little more than a nod and a polite smile as Simon placed his free arm over Izzy's shoulder and the two of them headed towards the kitchen.

"Magnus," Alec greeted him in response, his heart still beating fast as he folded his arms and took a step away, like he was trying to protect himself from any more heartache.

"Did you like the flowers?" Magnus asked him in barely more than a whisper as Alec took a step past him to head towards the living room. Magnus's tone of voice sounded a little nervous, for some reason.

Alec frowned at him, confused by the question. "They're Izzy's flowers, not mine," he answered with a shrug. "So, what does it matter?"

Instantly, Alec felt a little guilty for his abrupt answer to the question, especially when Magnus looked a little hurt by his response. But he was already feeling pretty irritated, and he definitely wasn't in the mood for Magnus's cryptic questions tonight, and it was making him feel kind of nervous, standing so close to Magnus when Magnus was looking so hot this evening wearing a black shirt and ripped jeans.

When Izzy and Simon finally walked out of the kitchen, the four of them settled in the living room to watch the movie. As Magnus dimmed the lights, Alec noticed that Izzy was wearing her glasses now. His sister had needed to wear reading glasses for years, but it was only recently that she seemed to be more comfortable actually wearing them.

Simon and Izzy sat down next to each other on the couch, while Alec and Magnus sat on separate chairs on either end of the room.

A couple of minutes into the movie, Izzy went to lean her head on Simon's shoulder, but she stopped what she was doing when Alec gave her a stern glance; he didn't want her to mess up her hair after he'd spent so long trying to get it to look right.

"Switch with me," Alec heard Izzy whisper to Simon, indicating that Simon should lean his head on _her_ shoulder instead, while she glared at Alec the whole time.

She then looked from Alec to Magnus and glared at Alec again, almost like it was _Alec's_ fault that Magnus was sitting so far away from him. Alec simply shrugged back at her in response.

He had to admit though that as Izzy ran her hands slowly through Simon's hair, Alec couldn't help feeling kind of… lonely. He really wished that he had someone to sit next to on the couch while he watched his favorite movies.

After that, Alec tried to concentrate on the movie, but it was pretty difficult, because his eyes were always drawn to Magnus; and, whenever he looked over at him, Magnus seemed to quickly look in the opposite direction, almost like he'd been looking over at Alec at the same time, too, which made Alec feel strangely tense.

As the movie continued, and Magnus continued to look away every time Alec glanced at him, Alec felt the sense of tension in the air, and his own inner anger seemed to increase with every passing minute.

* * *

They'd only got through one movie when Izzy and Simon started frantically whispering to one another, like they were talking about something pretty urgent.

"We have to go," Izzy suddenly announced to the room as she stood up, reaching for Simon's hand to help him up, too.

"Uh…yeah, some place to be," Simon mumbled, nodding along with Izzy. "Totally forgot…"

Alec frowned at the two of them, feeling a little confused. It almost seemed like they'd planned in advance to leave early.

"Maybe we can all watch the next movie another night?" Izzy suggested as she went to kiss Magnus on the cheek to say goodbye.

As they started to leave, Alec felt a sudden rush of anxiety. Quickly, he reached for his own leather jacket before he stood up from his seat on the couch.

"I…uh…I have to go, too," he mumbled in Magnus's direction the second Simon and Izzy headed out the door, not even bothering to think up an excuse or some place _he_ needed to be. He just felt way too nervous to be alone with Magnus right now.

"Oh, there's no need to rush off on my account, Alexander," he heard Magnus reply to him, his tone of voice sounding almost pleading, for some reason. "You're very welcome to stay…"

At those words, Alec knew that he couldn't take it anymore.

"Why?" he heard himself ask as he turned back to face Magnus, his tone of voice sounding a lot harsher than he'd intended.

He was met by a confused frown from Magnus, like Alec's question was the most bizarre thing he'd ever been asked.

"What do I even mean to you?" Alec snapped at Magnus in response to his frown. It was like he couldn't stop now that he'd got started. "You've made it pretty clear that you're Izzy and Simon's friend, not mine…"

Alec knew that he sounded petty, and childish, but right now, he didn't care. He needed Magnus to hear this, needed Magnus to know just how much it hurt him that he meant nothing to him.

"Sometimes, it feels like you go out of your way to talk to everyone else, except me," he continued to accuse Magnus. "You act so distant and uncomfortable when I'm around you, or you act like I'm not even here. It's pretty clear that I mean _nothing_ to you!"

For a couple seconds, Alec felt kind of relieved to get all that off his chest, but then he felt sad as he played over the words he'd just said over again in his head while Magnus stared at him in what looked like wide-eyed shock.

He also felt a little guilty, knowing that he was probably taking out his workplace related stress on Magnus, along with his sadness at his unrequited crush.

After a couple more seconds, Magnus seemed to snap out of his sense of shock, and a strange expression crossed his face-it was almost like an expression of sympathy, or understanding.

As Alec took a few deep breaths, Magnus took a few steps closer to him and ran his hand softly, gently up and down Alec's arm. Alec tried to ignore the fact that his skin was tingling at the contact, even under the fabric of his shirt.

"My darling Alexander…" said Magnus, while Alec frowned at his words. He'd never been called anyone's 'darling' before. It was kind of nice, in a weird way, in spite of the circumstances. "How can you not _know_ what you mean to me?"

Alec continued to frown at him, still feeling confused, and a little irritated by his own inability to grasp what Magnus was telling him.

"Ever since I met you," Magnus continued, still running a hand up and down Alec's arm, like he was trying to soothe him, "I can't do anything without…thinking of you."

Magnus said this like it was the most obvious thing ever, but still, Alec didn't get it. "Huh?" he asked Magnus, knowing that it wasn't exactly an eloquent way to respond.

Instead of replying to Alec's question, Magnus suddenly moved away from him and started walking towards a table in his hallway.

Alec still had no clue what was going on, but he watched in silence as Magnus picked up his phone and a notepad from the table, before he walked back towards him.

With a shaking hand, Magnus turned to the middle page of the notepad and handed it to Alec.

Alec saw that there was a list written out on the page in Magnus's handwriting. Alec read the words at the top of the list, noticing that Magnus seemed to have elaborated on some of the written words with either extra punctuation marks, or notes in brackets:

 _Romantic movies_

 _Star Wars (?)_

 _Working out (sometimes to the point of obsession!)_

 _Work_

 _Flowers (?)_

 _Blue (color)_

 _Gold (color)_

Alec continued to read down the list, taking in the names of a couple of his favourite TV shows and book series.

"What's all this?" he asked Magnus as he finished reading the list.

"A list…a list of all the things I think you might be interested in….potential topics of conversation to help make it easier to talk to you…"

Alec couldn't help noticing that Magnus was blushing now. "Why would you find it difficult to talk to me?" he asked Magnus, resisting a strong urge to protest that he _wasn't_ obsessed with working out, as Magnus's list seemed to suggest, and was instead just _passionate_ about it. He had other stuff he needed the answers to right now, especially when he knew that _h_ _e_ was the one who struggled to talk to people, not Magnus.

"Whenever I'm around you," Magnus mumbled, as he ran a hand over his ear, "I often find that I'm rendered _speechless_ …"

"Why?" Alec asked him, hoping that he didn't sound too pushy with his questions, but also really needing to clear this up.

In response, Magnus handed Alec his phone, which he'd been holding in his hand. In other circumstances, Alec might have smiled at how the phone cover was decorated with sequins and glitter, but he didn't really feel amused right now. All he felt was confusion.

He noticed that Magnus looked totally embarrassed as he placed the phone in Alec's hand, and he even looked away when Alec looked down at the screen. Alec was reminded of all the times he had to interview witnesses at work and they had to reveal really personal information to him in order to help solve a case. Information that they'd definitely prefer _not_ to reveal.

Magnus had already opened up a thread of conversation on his phone, with the word 'Isabelle' at the top, which let Alec know who Magnus was communicating with in this particular conversation.

Alec read the first few speech bubbles of the conversation, which were apparently sent a few months ago, in which Izzy seemed to be reassuring Magnus that Alec definitely _was_ gay and interested in men.

 _Thanks for that, Iz_.. _._ Alec thought to himself with a sigh of exasperation. He wasn't sure what part of 'I prefer to keep my private life private' his sister had never been able to understand. It was a little weird, though-he didn't get why Magnus would be asking Izzy about his sexuality.

Alec found the answer to his question in the next parts of the conversation on Magnus's phone, where Magnus was telling Izzy about how handsome, how hot, how beautiful he thought Alec was. Alec looked up from the screen, his eyes wide as he took in the blush on Magnus's face.

Then, the next part of the text conversation focused on all the things he apparently admired about Alec, such as his protectiveness of his sister, his devotion to his family, his dedication to his job, the way he sometimes covered for Simon when he said the wrong thing or got them all into awkward situations. The list went on and on, mixed in with comments about how Magnus found it difficult to concentrate when Alec was talking to him sometimes, because Alec was so attractive...

"But, you're straight…," said Alec, knowing that he probably could have come up with a more sensitive statement after reading all that stuff, but he was now feeling so confused as to what this whole conversation with Izzy was all about that he didn't know what else to say. "You always talk to Simon about your ex-girlfriends…"

"I'm bisexual," Magnus replied. His cheeks were still flushed, but his tone of voice sounded sure, certain, almost calm. "Simon has always been a _little_ more interested in hearing about the women I've dated than the men…" he shrugged, managing a half-grin and a wink.

Alec was still trying to process this brand new information, but he returned to the conversation, now feeling a little eager to read more of it. It was like a whole new world of possibilities had suddenly opened up to him.

He read on and on, reading all of Izzy's advice to Magnus on how he could go about flirting with Alec, how he could let him know that he was interested in him _like that_.

Then he read Magnus's complaints that he didn't know what to say to Alec sometimes, how Alec made him feel nervous.

After that there were suggestions about making lists of Alec's interests in order to find possible topics of conversation, and promises from Izzy that she would help find ways for the two of them to spend time alone together to get to know each other better, along with more suggestions that Magnus should ask Alec to stay for drinks after every movie night, in the hope that it would be easier for Magnus to talk to Alec when they were alone together.

Finally, there was a whole thread of conversation about how Magnus had been secretly sending flowers to Alec's apartment lately, after Izzy told him about how much Alec loved flowers, ever since they were kids, with Magnus telling Izzy that he hoped Alec would somehow work out that the flowers were from him.

 _So that's what all those flower deliveries were about…_ Alec thought to himself with another sigh.

It also explained Magnus's question earlier about whether he liked the flowers-he hadn't actually been referring to the flowers that Simon got for Izzy. It was all making a little more sense to Alec now. Well, the part about the flowers, anyway.

Alec read on and on, still in a state of shock. It had never even occurred to him that Magnus always acted so differently around him because _he_ made Magnus Bane nervous, and because Magnus was _attracted_ to him. He'd never even thought that he had the _ability_ to make a guy feel that way, or the ability to render a guy speechless, especially a guy who was as beautiful and as experienced as Magnus.

In a weird way, Alec kind of wanted to smirk smugly at discovering all this, at the knowledge that Magnus thought he was hot, but he knew that wouldn't be a very sensitive thing to do.

Anyway, it was also a little overwhelming to even think that Magnus cared about him enough to dedicate so much time and energy to talking about him, to thinking up ways to get to know him better. It was even stranger to think that his _sister_ had known about Magnus's feelings all along.

"Magnus, why didn't you just tell me all this?" Alec asked with frown, trying at the same time to keep his voice soft and gentle.

Magnus looked down at the floor and ran a hand over his ear again.

Alec wondered now if all of these gestures of Magnus's had always been more out of nerves than out of an attempt to annoy Alec by being cryptic.

"Alexander," said Magnus, now looking a little upset, "it's been a long time since I was in a relationship with a man-my most recent relationships have been with women; I feel a little…out of practice with guys, shall we say…"

Alec shook his head in confusion. He'd never really been 'in practice' with guys, so he couldn't relate to the feeling of being _out_ of practice. He couldn't help wondering if Magnus's past relationships with guys had somehow ended badly, or if certain guys hadn't loved him back, or loved him enough, and maybe that was why he was wary around Alec now.

"Anyway," Magnus continued, "look at you…"

Alec actually looked down towards his shoes, like this would provide him with the answers.

"You always seem so…sure of yourself every time we're at Pandemonium. You're so comfortable flirting with other men, and you even look a little... intimidating, sometimes, when you're leaning up against the walls and glaring at people. Just striking up a conversation with you can be pretty terrifying at times, Alexander. And of course, how could I _ever_ compete with all the stunningly handsome exes you no doubt have?"

Alec's eyes widened again at that statement. "Magnus, I…uh..." he rushed to explain, practically tripping over his words, "I don't uh…I don't have any exes…I haven't, I've never…" Alec knew that he was blushing, and his words quickly faded. He didn't know how to admit to any of this stuff out loud.

"That's _impossible_ ," Magnus countered in a stunned-sounding whisper, like he genuinely couldn't believe that Alec had never dated anyone before.

"It's not so impossible, Magnus," Alec shrugged, still feeling embarrassed. He wasn't feeling as nervous around Magnus anymore now though. It was like both of their confessions had somehow leveled the playing field between the two of them.

It was kind of unbelieveable though, to think that Magnus had always seen him this way, that Magnus genuinely believed that he was confident and experienced and attractive-that he could actually be seen as intimidating.

He thought of all the times when Izzy had told him that he could come across as a little moody or distant or standoffish to people who didn't know him. Alec knew that he only seemed that way to people because really, he was just shy, but apparently Magnus didn't know that yet.

He also thought of all the times when he'd threatened his sister's exes at Pandemonium, the ones who'd left her heartbroken, letting them know exactly what would happen if they ever came near her again. Magnus had been right there, all those times, watching Alec confront those guys. He wondered if that's what he meant by the whole intimidating thing.

Then there'd been the times at Pandemonium when Izzy had been teaching him how to flirt with guys so he could get a little practice. He'd usually resorted to lame pickup lines like, "Do you come here often?" in those situations, trying to act cool and confident and not like he was internally panicking. Maybe Magnus had seen all that, too, and misinterpreted his bad flirting as actual experience with men.

How could Magnus not have seen that all of it was an act, just a front he put on in his day to day life to fit in at work, to protect himself from being hurt, to avoid showing his vulnerability and his lack of confidence to the world?

Had the two of them been misreading each other this whole time? Had they _both_ been uncertain and nervous and secretly in love with the other, while believing that the other was indifferent, or unattainable, or way more experienced?

"So you see, Alexander," Magnus broke into Alec's private thoughts as Alec finished reading the conversation on his phone, "you think you mean nothing to me, when in reality, I want you to be the person who means _everything_ to me."

The two of them stared at one another, with Magnus looking at Alec with an almost expectant expression on his face, like he was waiting for some sort of reaction to all of these revelations, some sort of confirmation or denial.

Alec decided that now was probably the time to let Magnus know how he felt, too; he could put an end to months of awkward tension and uncertainty, if he could just be brave enough to act, if he could just get over his disbelief that this is how Magnus felt about him.

"Magnus," Alec told him, putting on a pretend sympathetic smile. "All of this-" he gestured from the phone to the notepad, "it's not going to work…"

"It's not?" Magnus asked him, before he sighed and looked down at the floor, and Alec felt a twist of sympathy as he took in the obvious look of total disappointment on Magnus's face; it was almost like Magnus believed that Alec was telling him he didn't feel the same way. Which totally wasn't true.

"No," Alec replied with a shake of his head, deciding to play along with this for a couple more seconds. "You see," he continued as he placed the phone and the notepad down on the nearest table, "if I wanted someone to mean _everything_ to me, I'd probably just do this…"

Magnus quickly looked up from the floor, looking nervous but curious at Alec's words.

Slowly, Alec took a couple steps closer to Magnus, trying to ignore the fact that his face felt flushed and his heart was pounding against his chest, not to mention the fact that he was feeling totally terrified that he was actually going to attempt to do this.

As he wrapped an arm around Magnus's waist, his hand shaking the whole time, Alec reminded himself that he _could_ do this, that Magnus felt the same way about him, that this whole time, Magnus had really believed that Alec was confident and experienced with guys, so maybe he _could_ be that kind of guy now, if only for a moment.

Then, he leaned in, pressing his lips to Magnus's, hesitantly at first, giving Magnus the opportunity to move away, if that's what he wanted to do.

Alec liked it better this way. He'd always kind of seen things in black and white, and he'd never been one for hints or suggestions or ambiguity. He'd rather just try to kiss Magnus right now than spend the next few months dancing around each other all over again.

Luckily, after he'd gasped and widened his eyes in apparent surprise at what Alec was doing, Magnus responded eagerly to the kiss, pulling Alec in even closer and pressing his lips even more firmly against Alec's.

Even though Alec had no other kisses to compare this one with, he knew that this kiss with Magnus was perfect. For all the hot guys he'd daydreamed about when he first started to realize that he was attracted to men, right now, Alec didn't think that he could ever kiss any man but Magnus Bane ever again.

Magnus's lips just felt so right against his, and Alec's heart was beating even faster, but in a _good_ way, and his lips practically tingled as their kissing became even more heated, and he was pretty sure his skin was tingling too as Magnus ran his hands over Alec's neck and then up and down his back.

It was like everything between them had been leading up to this, like the weird tension between them since they first met suddenly made sense, like this was why Magnus had never been able to treat Alec the same way he treated Izzy and Simon, or why he'd never been as comfortable around Alec as he was with his two best friends.

Alec almost couldn't believe that this was actually happening. He could only hope that he was doing this right, and that Magnus was enjoying this as much as he was.

Alec placed his hand more firmly on Magnus's back, running his other hand through Magnus's hair, enjoying the feeling of getting to touch and kiss Magnus like this. He definitely liked it, this feeling that he was taking the lead, setting the pace for their kiss. It made him feel a little more confident, and he decided he could get used to this.

All too soon, Magnus stopped kissing Alec and they stood still for a while, their breathing heavy as they continued to hold each other close. It was like they were both scared to break this moment, or to say the wrong thing. It was like they both needed this to last a little longer to be certain that it had really happened.

"I like your way better, Alexander," Magnus eventually told him with a smile, looking like he was trying not to laugh, but also looking a little nervous, too, at being this close to Alec after their kiss.

Alec almost laughed as well. It was so amazing, after months of believing that Magnus was pretty much indifferent to him, to see that Magnus was smiling at him now, to know that they were sharing a joke together, and to enjoy the feeling of holding Magnus in his arms.

All of this meant so much to Alec, and he hoped Magnus understood just how much he meant to him, how much _more_ he wanted Magnus to mean to him from now on.

He also hoped that Magnus would learn just how nervous and inexperienced he really was with all this; how shy and vulnerable he was under the 'intimidating' act he'd put on for the world to see ever since he became a cop, and he hoped that Magnus wouldn't judge him for it.

Trying to prove a point that he had a softer side, Alec pulled Magnus in for a hug, and Magnus went willingly. Alec had never been good at the whole hugging thing (in spite of Simon's best efforts to get Alec to hug him more), but Magnus didn't seem to be complaining right now.

"Sorry for yelling at you," Alec whispered in Magnus's ear. He'd never been good at apologies, either, but he really wanted Magnus to know that he was sorry for his outburst a few minutes ago.

"It's in the past," Magnus whispered back, holding him tighter.

"Stay?" Magnus asked him, the second Alec pulled back from the hug. Up close, Alec could see now just how nervous Magnus was as he asked the question.

Suddenly, Alec felt anxious again. "I…uh…I haven't ever…I…uh…I don't do the whole one-night thing-"

It had been terrifying enough, just kissing Magnus for the first time. He wasn't sure he was ready for anything else just yet. Besides, he realized now that he wanted to make sure that when he finally got into Magnus's bed, they'd be in a situation where he could end up in Magnus's bed again, every night _after_ that first time. As irrational as he knew his worry was, he was sure it would break his heart, if this only ended up being some kind of one night stand after everything Magnus had just confessed to him.

"Just for drinks, Alexander," Magnus cut in, like he could sense Alec's nerves. "I could make you tea, if you want, and we could just hang out in the living room and watch another movie…nothing too stressful…"

Alec nodded, feeling a little reassured by Magnus's words, and no longer feeling as uncertain about spending more time with Magnus, now that he knew how Magnus felt about him.

Magnus held out a hand to him, and Alec took it, secretly feeling really happy at getting to hold Magnus's hand as the two of them walked towards the living room.

They both sat down on the couch together this time, putting their arms around each other, the way that Izzy and Simon had done when they watched the movie earlier, while Magnus's two cats settled on the arms of the chair.

Alec still felt a little nervous, and he could tell that Magnus was nervous, too, but it was like the invisible wall between the two of them was slowly starting to collapse now that they both knew how the other felt.

With a grin, Magnus found a romantic movie for them to watch, and Alec tried not to blush as the movie started playing. He had no idea how Magnus had worked out that he liked movies like this. He'd always pretty much kept his preference for love stories quiet, especially when he was around all the guys at work who loved action movies. He was sure that Izzy was somehow to blame somewhere in this.

After a few minutes, Magnus pressed a kiss to Alec's lips again, almost like he hadn't been able to resist.

Alec kissed him back, and he noticed that Magnus blushed as soon as the kiss was over. Alec almost couldn't believe that he hadn't picked up on Magnus's nerves around him before now, couldn't believe that he'd missed Magnus blatantly looking him up and down and checking him out, the way he seemed to be doing now. Alec decided not to be so hard on himself this time-it wasn't like he had any basis for comparison with all this.

As the next couple scenes of the movie played on the TV, Alec continued to lean in to kiss Magnus every few minutes, determined to get his lips on Magnus's again and again now he'd had a taste of what it was like.

He decided that it didn't matter so much anymore about trying to be one of Magnus's friends-Izzy and Simon could keep that role; Alec was more interested in trying to be Magnus's boyfriend from now on.

After about half an hour of watching the movie together, Alec started to yawn. It was like the exhaustion from a week at work, and the shock and exhilaration of everything that had happened tonight, was finally catching up with him.

Nervously, uncertainly, he shifted a little in his seat, trying to decide if he was brave enough to do this, even though he'd secretly wanted to do it for so long.

In the end, he decided that if he was really going to open up and show Magnus his 'softer side', he'd have to start as he meant to go on, so, after a few more seconds of careful consideration, Alec moved to lie down on the couch, resting his head on Magnus's lap. He tried not to blush or breathe too heavily as he settled into this new position.

Thankfully, after a few seconds of staring down at Alec in apparent confusion, Magnus just seemed to go with it. He grinned softly and started running his fingers gently through Alec's hair.

Alec sighed in contentment at the gentle touches; no one had ever played with his hair like that before, and it felt amazing. He turned his head a little so that he could look up at Magnus with a smile. Before tonight, he couldn't remember the last time he'd smiled like this.

Magnus smiled back at him, his cheeks a little flushed as he ran his fingers over Alec's face, and over his lips.

Alec kept smiling as he closed his eyes and started to drift off to sleep. He could get used to meaning _everything_ to Magnus Bane.


	2. Everything Else

**Everything Else**

* * *

"Magnus?"

Magnus blinked a couple of times at the sound of Alec whispering his name in his ear, his tone of voice questioning, hesitant, maybe a little uncertain.

With a yawn, he tried to wake himself up a little; he'd just been about to drift off into a light doze, held almost protectively in Alec Lightwood's arms as the two of them cuddled together on Magnus's couch, with Magnus's two cats settled peacefully on the arms of the chair and a romantic movie playing in the background on the TV, the whole scene looking blissfully domestic, in a way that Magnus would never even have dared to dream, before he first confessed his feelings to Alec a couple of months ago.

The two of them had ended up here this evening after Alec had endured a long and stressful week at work, dealing with all the trials and tribulations (and long hours) that went with being a cop in the city. After yet another long day, Alec had sent Magnus a message after work, asking if he could come over this evening. When Magnus had readily agreed (feeling overwhelmingly happy that an exhausted Alec still wanted to spend time with him instead of heading straight home to his own apartment to sleep), he had asked Alec in his message if there was anything in particular he wanted to do this evening.

Alec had quickly replied: _Can I just hold you for a little while?_ he'd asked Magnus in his message.

After only a few weeks of dating, Magnus had already discovered that this was what Alec liked to do after stressful days. It was like the process of holding and protecting somebody else helped to soothe Alec's own tension and anxiety after work.

After months of secretly crushing on Alec from the moment he first met him, and feeling so nervous at first, just being in the same room as the object of his affections, and always believing deep down that Alec definitely wasn't interested in him like that, Magnus still found it a little hard to believe sometimes that _he_ was the person who Alec wanted to hold and cuddle with on the couch. It often felt too good, too unexpected to be true, and Magnus always had to silently remind himself that this was real, that this was happening.

"Yes, darling?" Magnus finally asked Alec with a raised eyebrow as he looked up at Alec curiously, still allowing Alec to hold him in his arms.

At the use of the term of endearment, Alec instantly blushed bright red and looked away, the way he always did when Magnus called him his darling.

For as much as he was blushing, however, Magnus also couldn't help but notice the grin that spread slowly over Alec's face, and Magnus knew from that smug-looking grin that Alec loved being called Magnus's darling, secretly.

As soon as his grin faded, Alec started taking a couple deep breaths, like he was feeling nervous about whatever it was he was about to say.

Magnus tried to remain as relaxed as possible, so as not to make Alec feel even more nervous. He thought back to how it had been at first, before they'd gotten together, when he'd barely been able to string a sentence together whenever he was in the same room as Alec Lightwood, always feeling totally overwhelmed by his good looks, his sharp words, his sarcastic comments and his intimidating demeanor-and of course, often being extra clumsy whenever Alec was around, with an embarrassing tendency to drop or accidentally break things.

Now, Magnus didn't feel so nervous around Alec anymore, especially since they'd taken the time to get to know each other a little better, spending time together just the two of them and having more personal conversations (even if they both still got a little embarrassed and awkward around each other, sometimes-it was still early days, after all). Magnus had also started to discover that a lot of Alec's typical behavior acted as a mask to hide his shyness, or to cover up his awkwardness around men and his lack of experience. But still, the tendency to feel a little breathless when Alec was around, or the tendency for his heart to start beating faster, hadn't gone away. Especially now, as he was waiting for Alec to continue with whatever it was he wanted to say.

"Will you be my boyfriend?" Alec finally asked after a couple more seconds of silence.

Magnus shifted a little in Alec's arms, blinking in surprise at Alec's question. It was true that they hadn't yet discussed the whole 'boyfriend' thing, but after they'd both admitted their feelings for one another, and shared a kiss, and had practically been inseparable ever since, Magnus had just sort of assumed…

"I was under the impression that I already _was_ your boyfriend, Alexander…" he whispered in response to Alec's question, keeping his tone of voice light, teasing.

"Yeah, well, I thought it'd be kind of nice to ask you and make it official," Alec quickly continued, still looking awkward and embarrassed. "Then we could do…you know…boyfriend stuff…" Alec blushed all over again as he finished his mumbled sentence, and then he frowned, like he was silently berating himself for the awkward way he'd worded the question.

"Boyfriend stuff?" Magnus asked with another raised eyebrow, unable to help feeling a little curious, in spite of Alec's obvious embarrassment.

"Uh…yeah, you know," Alec attempted to explain, a frown still on his face, "the whole hearts and flowers and chocolates thing…"

"Hearts and flowers and chocolates?" Magnus asked him with a little smile as he leaned his head on his hand and shifted closer to Alec on the couch. He was totally intrigued now.

"Yeah, all the uh…romantic stuff," Alec explained to him. "All that typical stuff that boyfriends do-or all the stuff I've heard boyfriends do, anyway…" he finished, his voice a little quieter now. For a moment, it was as though his vulnerability and lack of experience were written all over his face, and Magnus suddenly wanted to hold Alec tight, to protect him.

Magnus almost forgot sometimes, that this was Alec's first ever relationship. Not so long ago, he'd watched as Alec had often taken charge of their group of friends, taking responsibility for them all and determinedly dealing with awkward situations and not-so-pleasant people, and generally just organizing stuff for them.

Then, he'd watched as Alec had swaggered around the clubs that Izzy liked to take them all to, where he'd blatantly checked guys out, looking them up and down and smirking at them as he asked them if they 'came here often?'. Everything about Alec Lightwood had just exuded confidence and experience, especially experience with men, and so, it was both a surprise and a privilege for Magnus to get to see the nervous, uncertain, inexperienced side of Alec.

"Uh...what I mean is," Alec went on, interrupting Magnus's thoughts, "we could kiss and hold hands and cuddle..."

" _My brother isn't exactly the 'soft and cuddly' type…"_

This was one of the first things that Izzy had warned Magnus about Alec when Magnus started to confide in her about his feelings for her older brother.

As enthusiastic as she'd always been at the idea of the two of them getting together, Izzy had felt it was important to remind Magnus of Alec's apparently less-than-affectionate personality one Saturday afternoon as they worked out at the gym together, no doubt because Magnus had already spent the previous Saturday with his best friend, telling her over coffee about how he wanted his next relationship to be with someone who was more caring, more sensitive, more affectionate-someone who would appreciate cuddling and hugs and kisses as much as sex.

Izzy's point had seemed to be driven home by the fact that Alec had been on the other side of the gym studio at the time, aggressively punching a punch bag with a particularly intimidating look on his face (the same kind of expression he usually wore just before he started arguing with one of Izzy's exes), like he was trying to work out some kind of stress, or frustration, or anger.

Yet, since that night when Alec had kissed him and let Magnus stroke his hair as he lay in his lap, Magnus had quickly learned that there _was_ a secret 'soft and cuddly' side to Alec after all.

There had been so many more kisses and make out sessions since then-it was like now that they had started kissing one another, neither of them ever wanted the kissing to end. Alec often greeted him with soft, gentle kisses every time Magnus opened the door to him. Sometimes, they'd be in the kitchen, cooking together, or in the living room, watching TV on the couch, and Alec would simply lean in for a quick kiss before they carried on with whatever it was they were doing.

Although they didn't exactly walk around everywhere hand-in-hand, Alec seemed to be happy to hold Magnus's hand when they were lying next to each other in bed, or when they were having dinner or drinks together, and Alec would reach for Magnus's hand across the table while they talked about something serious, or under the table, when they were sitting at tables at restaurants or coffee shops with Simon and Izzy.

Last weekend, they'd been walking home from Pandemonium very late at night. Izzy and Simon had walked quickly ahead of them, the two of them still full of energy and still busting the occasional dance move along the way. He and Alec had walked slowly behind them, and to Magnus's surprise and delight, Alec had smirked shyly before he took Magnus's hand, so that for a little while, the two of them had walked hand-in-hand in the darkness, like they were both sharing a secret.

Magnus was pretty sure that Izzy and Simon would never believe him if he told them, but Alec also had to be one of the most cuddly guys that he had ever dated before.

Never before had a guy he was dating wanted to spend time with him in his apartment just to cuddle, without the promise of something more happening; never before had a guy just held him all night in his bed, happy for the shared affection and more worried about interrupting Magnus's sleep than asking for things to go further between them.

His thoughts drifted to a Saturday morning, a couple weeks after they got together, when Alec had been working all Friday night on a late shift. He'd shown up at Magnus's loft really early in the morning, looking exhausted and asking if he could just sleep for a few hours, together with Magnus in his bed. "I sleep better when you're there, too," he'd mumbled, blushing the whole time he'd said it.

Magnus had panicked, as he'd worried about Alec seeing him so early in the morning in old pajamas and probably looking tired after a long day of his own at work; he'd felt insecure about Alec seeing him before he'd had the chance to fix his hair and apply a little make up.

Alec had picked up on his nerves and asked him what was wrong, so he'd confided his insecurity to Alec as he got into bed with him. "I was a little worried, about you seeing me like this," he'd said to Alec, running a hand nervously over his ear and through his hair as he spoke.

"But why? You look beautiful," Alec had replied with a yawn and a shrug as he pulled Magnus in close, looking genuinely confused as to why Magnus was so nervous.

Of course, Magnus had practically felt a warm rush of happiness, of love, as he'd realized that Alec hadn't even cared about the fact that he wasn't all dressed up; Alec still thought that he was beautiful anyway; Alec just wanted to cuddle with him after a long night.

And so it had become a thing for them, for Alec to show up at the loft at whatever time he finished his late shifts so that they could cuddle and catch up on their sleep together.

"We already do all of that, Alexander," Magnus reminded him gently, with a soft smile, still unable to take his eyes off Alec as he cuddled close to him. For all of Izzy's warnings, Alec Lightwood was turning out to be one of the cuddliest guys that Magnus had ever met.

"Uh…yeah, you're right." Alec nodded in agreement. "Um, okay, I could take you out on dates..."

Magnus put on a mock frown as he thought about all the 'date nights' that he and Alec had already spent together (or nights that _he_ would class as dates, anyway); all the evenings they'd spent at Magnus's place, eating dinner together, watching movies, watching the stars from the balcony; all the walks in the park; the times they'd headed to bars together for late-night drinks when Alec had finished working his late shifts; and he was pretty sure that all their meals and evenings at bars and clubs with Izzy and Simon pretty much counted as double dates now…

"We already go on dates, darling," Magnus whispered as he brushed a few stray strands of hair out of Alec's eyes.

"Yeah, well, I was thinking, I could take you on more romantic dates-you know, to nice restaurants and stuff, places with candles on the tables, like in the movies. If you want to?"

"I'd love that, Alexander," Magnus nodded, thinking about how adorable it was that Alec was picturing the two of them going to places like that.

"We could take the sex step." Alec spoke the words in barely more than a whisper after a few moments of silence as he blushed an even darker shade of red, with the blush seeming to travel all the way down his neck, and Magnus, who was still pressed up close to him on the couch, could practically feel Alec's heart pounding against his chest.

Magnus felt a flush creep to his own cheeks. For all the guys he'd been with in the past, there was just something so… _magical_ about the thought of getting to be with Alec Lightwood like that, especially after so many months of thinking that he never even stood a chance with Alec romantically.

Magnus couldn't deny that he thought about it a lot, the whole 'taking the sex step thing'. He'd thought about it even before they got together, secretly.

Magnus could vividly remember one Saturday afternoon months ago in the gym, where Izzy had brought him to be her work out buddy, but he'd been a little too distracted by the sight of Alec Lightwood, working out shirtless a few feet away from them, a few trickles of sweat running down his torso as he exercised, to really concentrate on any exercise of his own, and Magnus had been unable to help a few not-so-innocent thoughts that appeared in his mind. He was only human, after all.

"Oh, how you torment me, Isabelle Lightwood!" Magnus had declared dramatically, placing his hand over his heart as he continued to blatantly check Alec out.

"Yeah, you look really 'tormented'," Izzy had replied to him sarcastically with a smirk and a roll of her eyes.

The two of them might have laughed together at Izzy's comment, but still, those not-so-innocent thoughts in Magnus's mind had never gone away.

Now, his longing for Alec went even deeper, as they were spending more and more time together as a couple, sharing affection, sharing passionate kisses, sharing gentle touches and soft caresses, with all of their invisible walls and barriers starting to fall away.

Not to mention that Alec had a tendency to walk around Magnus's apartment in just a towel when he took showers there, either just before or just after work, often rendering Magnus speechless and leaving him feeling a little spaced out, the way he'd often felt when Alec had first come into his life and he'd felt really shy and awkward around him. Alec also often walked into the living room still pulling a shirt over his head whenever he stayed over at Magnus's apartment and Magnus got up out of bed first, allowing Magnus to gaze at his torso for a few tantalizing seconds as he got dressed.

He longed to go further, to take that next step with Alec, and it came as a pleasant surprise to hear that maybe Alec wanted that too now, but he also knew how big a deal it would be to Alec, with it being his first time, and Magnus himself still felt a little vulnerable at the thought of being with a guy again, after plenty of not-so-great relationships with certain guys in the past, and all the times he'd brought guys he'd been seeing home, thinking that something special was getting started, only to wake up to an empty bed the next morning. He knew that Alec would never do anything like that, but still, it was hard to let go of that insecurity.

"We _will_ take the sex step, Alexander," Magnus reassured him, "but only when you're completely ready. I can wait…"

"And when you're ready too, Magnus," Alec told him in a whisper as he held him a little tighter, almost as though he could read Magnus's thoughts, could pick up on his insecurities.

Magnus took a couple of moments to appreciate the close contact before Alec spoke again…

"We could also do more of the stuff that's personal to us…"

Magnus felt as though tingles were running very pleasantly through his body as Alec mentioned doing stuff that was _personal_ to them-it sounded like such a _couple_ thing to say, like Alec considered their relationship to be something special, something unique to the two of them.

"Tell me more," Magnus whispered into Alec's neck.

"We could stay up late talking, and drinking tea together, like we always do; we could go for more walks in the park at night; we could carry on leaving notes for one another in the notebook where you used to write all your lists about me; we could relax here some more with the cats; we could watch more romantic movies together while you play with my hair-" Alec blushed a little deeper-"and maybe, sometimes, we could dance together-"

Magnus felt a little surprised at Alec's suggestion that they could dance together: It was true that Magnus loved to dance, both at home and when he was out at clubs-it was one of the things that had first drawn him to Isabelle Lightwood, back when they'd met at Pandemonium, and he'd realized she shared his talent (and Simon-well, Simon at least shared their enthusiasm for dancing), but Magnus had always assumed that Izzy's brother didn't exactly share this passion for dancing, not when he'd always hidden away in dark corners of clubs with his arms folded and a frown on his face whenever Magnus, Izzy and Simon hit the dance floor.

But then, there had been several times at Magnus's loft since they first got together when Magnus had been dancing around the living room to his favorite songs, and Alec had watched him intently from his place on the couch the whole time, with a kind of smirk on his face. Maybe Alec had been picturing the two of them dancing around the apartment together…

"And," Alec continued, looking more nervous than ever, "whenever we hang out at bars or at restaurants or at Pandemonium, you could introduce me as your boyfriend…And, when I'm around my family or say, at the latest work party that's coming up, I could bring you as my date, and everyone would know that we were together-as boyfriends, I mean."

As nervous as Alec sounded, Magnus couldn't miss that look of determination, that longing in his eyes.

 _This is what all this is about..._ Magnus thought. Alec was ready for all his friends and family to know for sure about his sexuality; he was ready for everyone to know that he was in a relationship with a guy, that this was a serious thing they had going on; he was ready for this to be a long-term thing; he was ready for everyone at work to know the truth, so he didn't have to hide any part of himself anymore; he was ready for the world to know that he and Magnus were together. He was just trying to find out if Magnus was okay with it, too.

Alec was watching him with such a nervous expression that Magnus knew he needed to say something soon to calm him down.

" _Of course_ I'll be your boyfriend, Alexander," Magnus told him as he ran his fingers softly up and down Alec's arm, and over his lips. Magnus had never been more certain of anything in his life. He wasn't sure if anyone had ever made him feel this happy, this content before.

Alec let out a deep exhale, as though he was finally letting out a breath he'd been holding in for a long time.

Then, a brilliant smile crossed his face, the same smile that Magnus had had the joy of seeing the night of their first kiss, when he'd been stroking Alec's hair-the smile that Magnus wanted to put on Alec's face over and over again.

"I fully expect hearts and flowers and chocolates," Magnus joked with a smirk and a wink, trying to add a little humor.

"Yeah, okay, I can do that," Alec told him, sounding strangely serious before he grinned again and pulled Magnus in for a hug.

* * *

A week later, on Friday evening, Magnus was just texting Izzy, confirming their plans to meet at the bar where Simon was playing his latest gig with his band, so that they could all catch up over drinks when he finished playing, when he was distracted by the sound of someone knocking on his door.

Leaving his phone on the coffee table, Magnus headed in the direction of the sound, pausing to check his reflection in the mirror on the way.

As Magnus slowly opened the door, he blinked in surprise a couple times at the sight of Alec, who was currently standing in the doorway and holding a bunch of flowers, and what seemed to be a red, heart-shaped box.

It wasn't that Magnus was surprised to see Alec at his loft; they'd talked about meeting here tonight before they joined Izzy and Simon at the bar so they'd have the chance to spend a little time together as a couple before they headed out. And it wasn't like he wasn't happy to see him; he was always happy at any chance to see Alec, especially when they both worked long hours and sometimes had to go for days without seeing one another.

Besides, Magnus always felt a thrill of exhilaration, a rush of love, every time he saw Alec, especially at times like these when he was looking so handsome, dressed all in black, his clothes somehow both casual and smart at the same time in preparation for drinks at the bar later.

Magnus was _more_ surprised by the strange items that Alec was holding in his arms.

"Hey," Alec greeted him with a quick kiss on the lips, apparently oblivious to Magnus's look of surprise.

"What's all this?" he couldn't help asking after he returned Alec's kiss and slowly closed the front door, gesturing from Alec to the flowers and the box.

He also couldn't help the confused frown that crossed his face.

For some reason, Alec blushed a little, but he also looked a little surprised at Magnus's question. "I…uh…I thought this is what we agreed on," Alec muttered, now sounding a little nervous as he looked from Magnus to the flowers and the heart-shaped box. "Do you not like them?"

For a few moments, Magnus stared blankly from Alec to the flowers and the box. Then, as he worked out that the heart-shaped box was a box of chocolates, another realization suddenly hit him: Alec had taken his joke last week about 'hearts and flowers and chocolates' literally; he'd thought that Magnus had been serious about wanting all this stuff if the two of them were officially going to be boyfriends.

Magnus tried his best to cover up his amused smile. It was still so easy to forget how new all of this was to Alec-that he'd never done the whole relationship thing before. There was something so adorable about the fact that Alec had interpreted Magnus's joke as a task that he really _did_ have to complete in order to obtain 'boyfriend status'.

Magnus thought about explaining everything to Alec, telling him that he'd just been kidding, that he wasn't expecting any kind of gift to 'seal the deal' on their 'boyfriends agreement'…

But Alec was looking at him so intently, with such a nervous-but-expectant expression on his face, and he seemed to be taking deep breaths, like Magnus's reaction to this gesture would mean everything to him.

"Thank you, Alexander, they're perfect," Magnus chose to say instead. "Perfect gifts from my _boyfriend_ ," he added with a grin.

Alec let out a breath, and then he smiled a happy, genuine smile, looking really proud of himself.

The two of them ended up sitting at Magnus's kitchen table together (after Magnus found a vase to delicately place the flowers in, feeling so overwhelmingly thrilled at the idea that someone had thought to buy him flowers). Magnus made tea for them both, and the two of them happily shared the box of chocolates and took occasional sips of their tea as they talked about their day.

The time seemed to pass far too quickly, and it wasn't long before Magnus started fussing over his hair as they made hurried plans to go meet up with Izzy and Simon, hoping that they'd be okay about the fact that he and Alec would probably arrive too late to watch Simon's gig.

Magnus had just reached for his eyeliner when Alec suddenly held up a hand as though to stop him. "Uh…can I…" Alec blushed as Magnus raised an eyebrow at him in his confusion. "Can I uh…put it on for you?"

Magnus blinked a couple times in surprise, unable to say anything in response in his shock. In spite of the eager look on Alec's face, he couldn't help worrying that Alec would have no idea when it came to applying make up. But Alec seemed to take hold of the little black tube of liquid eyeliner with practiced hands, and then he was applying eyeliner for Magnus like an expert as Magnus sat in front of the mirror, trying his best to keep still and not raise his eyebrows in surprise or ask too many questions about Alec's talent with make up.

It seemed that he learned something new about Alec Lightwood every day. Alec even ran his hands expertly through Magnus's hair after he finished applying the eyeliner, helping Magnus to style it to perfection. Magnus couldn't help wondering what other hidden skills Alec possessed.

Magnus had already insisted that he wanted to Alec to be the person who meant _everything_ to him, but now, he was also looking forward to discovering _everything else_ about his boyfriend.

* * *

Isabelle Lightwood stood behind the small audience as she watched Simon and his band play their latest gig at a local bar in Brooklyn.

She might have been hanging around at the back of the room, trying to be a little discreet so the fans of the band could get a better view of the stage, but Simon still noticed her after a couple minutes. As his eyes fixed on hers, he gave her the goofy-looking smile that Izzy had always found pretty adorable, and then he seemed to look her up and down, taking in the band T-shirt that she'd put on tonight in support of her boyfriend, along with the silver key she was wearing around her neck like a necklace, attached to a silver chain.

After another quick smile and a wink, Simon focused his eyes on the rest of the crowd again.

Izzy couldn't help smiling to herself, wondering how she'd gotten so lucky to find a guy as sweet as Simon, especially after so many not-so-great relationships in the past.

It was also an added bonus that she'd found a guy who her over-protective older brother actually seemed to approve of-well, with the exception of his sighs, sarcastic comments and eye-rolls in reaction to Simon's typical behaviour, and Simon's personality, and his jokes.

Almost absently, Izzy brushed her fingers over the key that Simon had just been staring at. He had given her the key as an anniversary gift a couple of days ago when he first asked her to move in with him.

Their decision to move in together wasn't exactly meant to be some big secret, but the two of them had kind of kept the news private for a little while, like they wanted to just appreciate this next step in their relationship as a couple, before all their friends and family found out.

Anyway, for Izzy, this felt like a really big deal-she'd never really been in a committed, stable relationship like this one before, and she knew that things were serious now between her and Simon.

She'd wanted a little time to just enjoy the moment before her family got involved. Especially as Alec would no doubt go into overprotective-older-brother-mode as soon as she told him the news. He was already stressed enough about his upcoming work party, and the fact that Izzy and Simon had both gotten kind of drunk at the last one, and Izzy and Alec's recently divorced mom (who'd also been drinking) had gone on and on for weeks afterwards about how 'handsome' and how 'charming' Alec's boss, Luke had been at the party, and she was now totally eager to see him again at the next party. Alec was therefore tense enough right now without Izzy giving him anything else to think about.

So, she'd been putting off the announcement for as long as possible. But Izzy had kind of hoped that she could use the gig tonight as an excuse to tell her best friend and her older brother the good news, before they started hearing rumors or gossip from any of Simon's friends.

Although, if Alec had some kind of 'distraction' in his life right now, maybe the news about her decision to move in with Simon, and the upcoming work party, wouldn't seem like such a big deal to him…

As she swayed in time to the music, ignoring a couple of guys who looked over in her direction, Izzy's thoughts drifted to Alec and Magnus. She'd invited Alec for drinks at the bar when she met up with her brother earlier in the day for lunch, and she'd spent most of the afternoon texting Magnus, asking him to come along too, but they'd both seemed kind of distant lately, almost like they were both keeping some sort of secret, so Izzy wasn't exactly sure if they'd show up.

It wasn't just that Izzy wanted Magnus and Alec to be here so she could announce her news about moving in with Simon, and it wasn't just about wanting to spend time with two people who she cared about so much, even though that was a big part of it-the truth was that she kind of suspected that something was going on between the two of them…

Alec definitely seemed to be spending a lot of time over at Magnus's loft recently, and he always blushed and grinned whenever Izzy tried to ask him about all the time he was spending with Magnus, looking really pleased about something, and Magnus seemed happier than he'd been in a long time lately, like he was suddenly lighter, more free, less stressed about issues in his day-to-day life.

His constant texts asking Izzy for advice on how to go about flirting with Alec had also stopped over the past few weeks, which is what had really alerted Izzy to the fact that something was up.

Izzy had been determined not to push the two of them for information, or to make them reveal anything before they were ready, but it didn't stop her from watching them closely whenever they all hung out together, searching for clues.

Tonight, she really wanted to find out more-oh, okay, she wanted to find out _everything_ , especially when she'd always believed that the two of them would be perfect for each other anyway.

She'd known all along how Magnus felt about Alec, even before he'd started confiding in her about his feelings and desperately asking her for advice-anyone could have guessed, from the look on his face when she first introduced him to Alec, that Magnus had a major crush on him.

And Izzy had always believed that Alec felt the same way, secretly-he couldn't take his eyes off Magnus whenever he was in the same room as him, and he always blushed and stumbled over his words whenever Magnus stood close to him.

As she glanced at her phone, looking for any new messages and not finding any, Simon and the rest of the band finished playing the last notes of their final song to a loud round of applause.

Putting her phone back in her pocket, Izzy clapped and whistled along with the audience, unable to resist shouting, "You were awesome, sweetie!" to Simon.

As the last round of applause faded, Izzy headed in the direction of the bar, leaving Simon and the rest of the group to take a couple photos with a few of their more enthusiastic fans, knowing that Simon would come join her when he was done with his 'band duties'.

After she'd glanced at her phone again to check for messages, Izzy's eyes were drawn to the cocktail menu. She smirked in approval as she looked at the pictures of the more unique cocktails on the drinks list tonight (there was a pink-colored one that seemed to be full of sparkling glitter, another that had some kind of multi-colored effect going on, and another that seemed to be decorated with flowers). She thought about how much Magnus would love them, if he were here right now.

She'd just asked the bartender for a strawberry-flavored glitter cocktail, when Simon started to head in her direction.

"Hey, baby," Izzy greeted Simon as he moved to stand next to her at the bar, before he leaned in for a quick kiss.

"Make that two cocktails," she quickly told the bartender, amending her order, "I want another one for my boyfriend."

" _I'm_ her boyfriend!" Simon announced to the whole bar as soon as Izzy placed her order, like he couldn't believe it himself.

Izzy suspected that Simon had maybe already had a couple drinks before the gig.

Before she could say anything else, Magnus rushed up to the bar, mumbling his apologies about being late.

Izzy waved his apologies away, simply feeling happy to see him. She'd just opened her mouth to order a third glitter cocktail for her friend when, to her surprise and her amazement, Alec suddenly arrived at the bar, and he went to stand right next to Magnus, putting his arm affectionately around Magnus's shoulder.

"And another one for my boyfriend," Alec told the bartender with a confidence, a certainty to his voice that Izzy hadn't heard for a while. He also seemed to be fighting off a smug smirk.

Izzy watched the two of them, wide-eyed, as Magnus also grinned, looking happier than he'd looked for a long time, and Alec pulled him in even closer to his body.

Her brother looked over and smiled at her, and it took all of Izzy's efforts not to jump up and down and shriek in triumph as she smiled back, feeling a rush of pure and total joy.

Her best friend and her brother, together! Two people she cared about so much, together! Two people who had so obviously cared about each other so much from the moment they first met, together! She was _so_ happy for them!

Magnus winked at her, discreetly, and Izzy wondered if Alec, with all his dignified behavior, had any idea that she and Magnus would probably be jumping up and down in celebration together at some point over the next few days, before Izzy would insist that Magnus tell her _everything_.

Apparently, Simon was just as happy for them…

"Dude!" he exclaimed triumphantly as he grinned at Alec and held up his hand for a high-five, yet another 'macho' gesture that he always tried to get Alec involved in.

For a second, Izzy tensed, worrying that Alec would make a sarcastic comment to Simon and ruin the magic of the moment, but Alec simply smiled and patted Simon affectionately on the back, before he pulled him in for a kind of half-hug.

Izzy smiled at her boys, thinking about how the moment had just become even more perfect.

"And another cocktail for Alec's boyfriend," she repeated to the bartender with a smile.


End file.
